The nominees for the Riga Business Award 2026 have been selected in seven categories. Organised for the sixth year by the Riga Investment and Tourism Agency (RITA), the award will honour its winners on 23 November at a ceremony in the Great Hall of the Small Guild, attended by the Mayor of Riga, Viesturs Kleinbergs.
The award recognises companies that have made a significant contribution to Riga’s economic development, innovation and international competitiveness. This year, 23 companies have been nominated across six priority sectors – startups, global business services, ICT, real estate, life sciences and high value-added manufacturing – as well as in the “New Company of the Year” category. This year’s ceremony is all the more special as it takes place during Riga’s 825th anniversary year.
How nominees and winners are selected
Nominees are put forward by industry associations, which assess companies against criteria set by RITA: new jobs created, investments made or attracted, outstanding achievements in their sector, contributions to sustainability and employee wellbeing, and innovation. Nominated companies must also adhere to the principles of good governance and must not cooperate with aggressor states or be linked to sanctioned persons.
The winners will be chosen by a jury made up of representatives of the following industry associations: the Latvian Startup Association Startin.LV, ABSL Latvia – the association of the global business services sector, the Latvian Information and Communications Technology Association (LIKTA), the Real Estate Developers Alliance (NĪAA), the Association of International Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (SIFFA) and the Latvian Electrical Engineering and Electronics Industry Association (LETERA). The expert jury includes representatives of RITA, Riga City Council, the Employers’ Confederation of Latvia (LDDK), the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LTRK) and the Foreign Investors’ Council in Latvia (FICIL). The jury votes on each category, and at least six of the 11 votes are required to name a winner.
“This year’s nominees show how diverse and strong Riga’s business environment is – from startups and global service centres to developers, manufacturers and healthcare institutions. Each of them creates new jobs, attracts investment and strengthens Riga’s name in the world. We thank the industry associations for their contribution in nominating the companies. We look forward to 23 November, when we will celebrate this year’s winners,”
says Fredis Bikovs, Director of RITA.
An award that continues after the ceremony
The award is more than a gala evening. Since last year, the Mayor of Riga and RITA have visited all seven Riga Business Award 2025 winners, and these conversations with business leaders have turned into concrete next steps in talent attraction, healthcare innovation and construction processes. After the ceremony, the Mayor of Riga and RITA will also visit the 2026 winners.
Riga Business Award 2026 nominees by category
- Startups: SEQ SIA (OffSeq), SIA Spotwise, SIA Prime Prometics
- Global Business Services: GoCardless, Atea Global Services, Accenture Latvijas filiāle (Accenture Baltics), Epson Europe Business Services filiāle Latvija
- ICT: SIA Tet, Accenture Latvijas filiāle (Accenture Baltics)
- Real Estate: SIA Capital Mill, Invego SIA, Kaamos Real Estate (Kaamos Latvija), SIA Merko mājas, SIA One Development, Verde Development SIA, AS PN Projects (Preses Nama Kvartāls), SIA Bonava Latvija
- Life Sciences: SIA “Gremošanas slimību centrs GASTRO” (Digestive Diseases Centre GASTRO), VSIA “Bērnu klīniskā universitātes slimnīca” (Children’s Clinical University Hospital), SIA DATAMED
- High Value-Added Manufacturing: Redwire Defense Tech Riga SIA, AS “SAF Tehnika” (Aranet)
- New Company of the Year: Ascent Lumina SIA, SIA “Amorphous Health”, Epson Europe Business Services filiāle Latvija